Bally Sports Ohio analyst and former Cincinnati Reds pitcher Sam LeCure talked about outfielder Tommy Pham's visit to San Francisco's Oracle Park for the first time since a pregame incident last month at Great American Ball Park in which he slapped Giants outfielder Joc Pederson in the face over a fantasy-football dispute. LeCure described Pham as the type of player no one likes, unless he's on your team.
"If all the guys from the other teams hate you, you're probably doing something right," LeCure said during "Reds Live" before Friday night's 4-2 win. "I mean, I used to feel the same way about Tommy Pham. I didn't like Tommy Pham. I couldn't have told you anybody around the league that would. But he gets on your team and you start to understand what this guy's about. ... In San Francisco, they embrace (Pederson as) kind of that oddball maybe. He's kind of out there a little bit. ... He's having a career-type year thus far."
The Enquirer's Bobby Nightengale reported earlier that Pham smiled and said he expected "clapping" from the crowd in San Francisco.
Fans at Oracle Park booed Pham when he was introduced before the game and during his first at-bat Friday night.
"We've gotten to know Tommy Pham a little bit, and I can tell you that he feeds off this kind of (booing)," Bally Sports Ohio color analyst Chris Welsh said during the at-bat. "This is incentive for him."
Pederson said Thursday that he hoped San Francisco fans would be respectful toward Pham during the three-game series.
Pham served a three-game suspension for slapping Pederson. Pham responded earlier this month to a tweet pointing out that the Giants wore T-shirts before a game that read, "Fantasy football 101: Stashing players on the IR isn't cheating," as a show of support for Pederson. Some of the Reds wore "Pham!" shirts before Friday's game.
'Joc deserved to be slapped:' Reds outspoken OF Pham opens up
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